Genesis, Toyota among Consumer Reports’ top auto picks

In the pantheon of luxury carmakers, Hyundai Motor Co. doesn’t usually come to mind. But the Korean company’s new Genesis brand beat out German rivals to be named 2018’s best car brand in the U.S. by Consumer Reports.

In fairness to its foes, the Genesis brand had only two models – the G80 and G90 sedans – up for review by the magazine, while Audi and BMW each fielded eight. Still, Genesis’s win reflects steady improvement by Korean automakers over the years, first in the arena of reliability and fuel economy, and now in performance and luxury features, according to Jake Fisher, the magazine’s director of auto testing.

Dead last in J.D. Power’s quality surveys in 1994, Hyundai spent years as fodder for late-night comedians. But the carmaker and Kia are no longer seen as builders of cheap, utilitarian urban cars, with both automakers now ranking among the highest in J.D. Power’s annual vehicle dependability study.

“They have over the years checked every one of these boxes and they’re really building very competitive vehicles,” Fisher said of the South Korean automakers. “It’s really going to happen for Genesis once we see luxury SUVs, because the luxury market is all about SUVs — that’s where the volume is.”

The rankings are published in the magazine’s annual auto issue and help influence American car buyers when they head to the dealership. Consumer Reports is an influential source for product recommendations because it doesn’t accept advertising, and buys the cars it tests and evaluates for driving, interior-finish quality, safety and reliability. The report card, covering 34 auto brands, aggregates information about every individual model reviewed, as well as results from satisfaction surveys submitted by subscribers.

GM versus Tesla

At No. 8, Tesla remained the highest-rated American auto brand. But it doesn’t make the best electric car. That honor went to General Motor’s all-electric Chevrolet Bolt, which won in the new Compact Green Car category.

The Bolt stood up against other pure EVs like Tesla’s Model S, as well as hybrids like the Toyota Prius. As a hybrid, the Prius still burns gasoline, and the Model S’s price tag that can exceed $100,000 is out of reach for most consumers, so the environmental impact of each is limited, Fisher said. With the testing model costing $38,424 and boasting 250 miles of battery range, the Bolt wins. The Model 3 could challenge it, but first Tesla has to produce them at scale.

Toyota dominates

The Toyota brand continued to rule the top car picks, with its models winning four categories — more than any other automaker. The Toyota Corolla was the best compact car, the Camry the best midsize car, the Highlander the best midsize SUV and the Sienna the best minivan, according to the rankings.

Toyota dominates when it comes to reliability, and it earns extra points for making safety features like automatic emergency braking and forward collision warnings standard on all its vehicles. But it rarely measures up when it comes to road-testing and handling, Fisher said. Ford and GM have the opposite issue — their cars shine on the track, but owners often find themselves in the repair shop, he said.

It doesn’t have to be either-or. Audi excels in both performance and reliability, while Fiat – which came in dead-last on the brand rankings for another year – struggles in both areas, Fisher said.

Sales aren’t everything

Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz brand won the U.S. luxury sales crown for two years running and got a good head start on 2018 last month. But BMW is still trouncing its German rival in Consumer Reports rankings, with BMW in third place and Mercedes in 15th. That’s because Mercedes quickly expanded its lineup to include more low-end luxury vehicles like its CLA four-door coupe, which is luxury in name only, Fisher said.

“It looks like a Mercedes-Benz but it doesn’t drive like Mercedes-Benz,” he said. “People are not very happy with it.” BMW’s X3, meanwhile, was the magazine’s top pick for compact luxury SUV.